Devices for making shredded cereal biscuits are well known. In the conventional process, wheat or a combination of wheat and other grain is first softened by cooking and tempering and is fed into each of a series of shredding mills. The conventional shredding mill comprises a pair of closely spaced rolls that rotate in opposite directions, with at least one of the rolls having circumferential grooves. Upon passing between the rolls, the wheat is deformed into long individual strings or shreds.
The shredding mills are arranged in a linear series across a common conveyor, with the shreds running longitudinally or in parallel with the direction of movement of the conveyor. A typical biscuit, for example will contain up to 21 individual layers of shreds, thus requiring as many as 21 separate shredding mills along the conveyor.
Upon obtaining the requisite thickness, the multiple layer web is cut transversely across the shreds into a single line of individual biscuits. The biscuits are then toasted and may also be frosted before packaging. The cutting operation also serves to seal the severed edge of the biscuit, resulting in the well known configuration shown in U.S. Pat. No. Des. 48,001. One of the major disadvantages with the conventional system is the large amount of capital equipment required for a single biscuit line. Large scale production will require a number of separate lines, each with its own series of shredding mills, conveyor, cutting and handling devices, with biscuits being formed one at a time on the conveyor.
Another drawback with the conventional process is the inherent limitation on possible biscuit sizes. The shredding rolls have a fixed width and are therefore capable of producing a shred layer of only a single width. Although the shredded web may be subdivided longitudinally as well as being cut transversely, possible biscuit sizes are substantially limited. A major change in biscuit size might very well require a costly replacement of shredding mills.
A further difficulty with the conventional process lies in the cutting operation wherein the web of piled shreds is severed into individual biscuits. Either by necessity or practice, press type cutters or rotating contact cutters are employed to severe the web across the shreds. A typical cutting device is of the rotating paddle wheel type, in which individual blades contact the web at regular intervals. During continuous production, the ability of such cutting devices to perform satisfactorily is limited by the tensile strength and stickiness of the shredded material, in that the material will tend to adhere to the blade or the blade will not completely sever the material. Thus, although a wide range of products can be successfully shredded in shredding mills, only those products having rather specific properties in shredded form can be successfully shaped by conventional procedures.